


Goes Down Easy

by Wondersbona



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2020-05-31 17:00:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19430257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wondersbona/pseuds/Wondersbona
Summary: Momo is a third wheel until she saves a drunk girl from getting hit by a car.





	Goes Down Easy

Momo pushed past Jihyo and Nayeon, head bent down staring at her shoes as she auto-piloted her way to the front door of Nayeon’s house. It was stupid of her to come over, to join in on all the "fun" Jihyo advertised. The party was mostly drunk boys stumbling around "accidentally" groping girls and Nayeon and Jihyo forcing Momo to find someone to hook up with.

She wasn't interested, not in Jungyeon who spilt beer on her shoes, not in Mina who was awkward and infatuated and definitely not in Jae.

Leaving the party didn't lessen her headache or dry her shoes and the only solace offered was the light sound of wind rustling leaves as she made her way toward her own home. She hated that she got excited by Nayeon’s text.

Her heart raced when she spoke with Nayeon, she hid it well though, because Jihyo had spent 3 years with anxiety over the possibility that Nayeon might like her back. They were finally a thing and despite Momo's racing heart, she was happy for them.

There just wasn't someone out there for her like with Jihyo, she didn't have the luck.

Momo sighed, the night noise around her consuming the sound. Life was cruel sometimes.

Ahead of her, a body danced, laughed, skipped and twirled drunkenly. She couldn't make out who it was but they seemed in their own world. Ditzy, Momo thought to herself, she chuckled, whoever it was, took her mind off the depressing thought of being lonely forever.

The feeling replaced with a slight concern over the stranger ahead. Would they be safe walking alone?

The party was dwindling down when she’d left, any minute now half-drunken teens would be speed racing up the hill toward their houses.

She was right when a few cars flew past her, blasting music. Momo watched as the figure in front stopped, wobbly veering off the sidewalk toward the street.

She sprinted. Her lungs burned as she tugged the stranger back. Her hand enclosed on the slim wrist of a girl taller than her.

She couldn’t hold back the anger that boiled in her "Are you insane?"

The girl blinked, registering the emotion, sobering up a little. She whined at Momo’s grip trying to peel the girl's fingers off in haste.

Momo calmed herself down, retracting her hand after a few lame attempts from the stranger at peeling her off.

"What's wrong with you.." Momo trailed off. The girl turned her back walking across the street with her hand held up high. She stood on the other side of the sidewalk, left hand balled up as she pointed with her right to a house behind her.

"I live here, what's wrong with you," the girl slurred before stomping up the steps.

Momo shoved her hands into her pockets, so much for being nice. It didn't matter, at least that girl wasn't splattered all over the asphalt.

Her house was only a block away from her run in with the ditzy girl. A block up a huge hill making her feet ache, it was the last time she walked down the hill to Nayeon’s house.

No lights were on, because no one was ever home. Not her parents, not even her dogs. They were away on a spa trip because Momo felt bad she had forgotten to feed them two days ago.

Her loved ones being absent only aided to the loneliness in her heart. She didn't want to think of the fact that it 'couldn't get worse’, but the thought slipped. She thought it, and then she could almost hear life laughing at her.

Nayeon’s drunk text about how she and Jihyo had finally hooked up and that she had been scared, but it ended well, made her heart sink.

She’d been meaning to get over her crush on Nayeon but she didn’t know it would suck so much.

She swallowed, deleting the message before tossing her phone to the floor.

"Please stop hating me," she begged to no one in particular, as warm tears slid down her cheeks falling off her chin.

Life was cruel she declared, and it would continue being cruel.

* * *

The girl who willingly wanted herself splattered all over the asphalt, her name was Sana and Momo couldn't stop noticing her everywhere in school.

She'd never noticed her before, not in calculus or home ec, not even at lunch. (she sat two tables to Momo’s left)

Momo stared off toward where Sana sat, losing focus she thought about that night, how cute Sana looked albeit wasted and sweaty but still adorable flustered.

Nayeon waved her hands back and forth in front of Momo's face, "are you listening?"

"To what?"

Jihyo giggled, "Nayeon thinks you should give Mina a shot"

Momo turned her head letting her eyes adjust like a camera lens. She scrunched her nose at the mention of Mina, it wasn't that she hated the girl or that Mina wasn't incredibly attractive.

She just happened to like extroverted girls more. Mina wasn't exactly the extrovert type, in fact she didn't think she'd see Mina at the party in the first place.

"Oh come on Momo," Nayeon teased, "you said yourself she had a nice body."

"Nice body no personality," Momo waved off, stealing a quick glance back to where Sana sat.

"Well damn, don't be too nice tell us how you really feel," Jihyo bit into a fry.

Nayeon studied Momo, pretending she knew exactly what Momo’s nuances and expressions meant. It was more Jihyo’s thing being analytical and able to read a situation.

She followed Momo’s not so quick glance. A table not too far from their own sat three girls Nayeon had never seen before or at least she didn't remember seeing.

She smirked, "who's that?"

Momo refused to look at the older girl, knowing Nayeon wore a proud smug mask, it’s how she operated.

Jihyo joined in oblivious, she was still interested in the fries in front of her but wouldn't miss out on something juicy.

"Some stupid girl I met yesterday."

Jihyo coughed, "a girl from the party?"

Momo shrugged, already bored with the conversation she felt like she had 100 times before.

"Well, what's her name?" The couple asked in unison excited about the prospect of Momo finally getting some playing time out in the field.

"Sana."

Momo crushed her paper bag and left, she didn't much care to get interrogated any further.

She knew there was a trashcan behind her, knew because she'd been throwing the remnants of her food away for 3 years into the same bin but decided to go to the trashcan closest to the table Sana sat at.

If she'd thrown her trash away like she always did maybe she wouldn't have caught the wink Sana gave as she glanced in her direction for one last look.

* * *

Momo laid on the floor of Jihyo's room. The carpet digging into her back and the textbook on her stomach getting heavier by the minute.

"I can't take it."

"Take what," Jihyo asked from atop her bed.

They were studying for calculus Momo’s worst subject and a Jihyo’s equally worse subject. Nayeon was the genius but she had prior plans for the night so that left the two idiots to study together.

Jihyo wasn't really studying but busy texting Nayeon some pretend updates on her progress while Momo thought incessantly about her many encounters with Sana.

First, it was the night of the party, then the wink at school, then Sana brushing past her in the hall, and Sana waving at her. Then Sana stole Jungyeon’s seat by her in home ec. She was everywhere.

"Sana," Momo sighed slamming the textbook closed before dumping it off her chest.

"You know if you like her you could ask her out," Jihyo threw the idea out there.

It was different with Jihyo than with Nayeon because Jihyo was considerate and caring and somehow knew what Momo was thinking.

Nayeon was a tease and only cared about making Momo into a joke.

"I don't like her," she shook her head adamantly.

Jihyo only laughed, "sure that's why you always talk about her," her phone dinged, "Nayeon said you should ask her out."

Momo groaned, of course, her friends were on the same wavelength.

* * *

Sana waited outside her house on the sidewalk for Momo to pass by. She knew Momo would come because she’d watched the girl ride past on her cruiser for years.

Sana went to the party upon request from a friend. Her friends said that she’d love Nayeon’s parties and she did, there were a lot of really attractive girls there.

One had caught her eye when she got there, a brunette who stormed off too many times for her to count. The party was dying down and she should’ve asked to walk with someone because she barely got up the street on her own.

That night could’ve ended really badly had it not been for a girl. The girl who stormed off a lot.

Sana should've thanked Momo when she'd been yanked away from the grill of a Jeep Cherokee. But in the moment all she knew was that Momo was hurting her and yelling at her. She felt defensive and didn't register the severity of the situation.

Now she wanted to formally apologize and thank the girl.

Momo had one of the best internal clocks around, she could wake up a few seconds before her alarm went off almost every time. Except for when she spent the entire night crying and telling herself to get over Nayeon.

Momo slumped out of bed, her alarm hadn't gone off and she was about an hour late to school. There was no urgency to get there, she'd already missed first period and it wasn't like anyone was waiting for her.

Nayeon and Jihyo were too absorbed in each other to worry about where Momo was. Still, she sent a quick text to Jihyo about her alarm and then walked her bike out of the garage.

Momo lived on top of a hill, she lived just outside of the major neighborhood her house half hidden by trees. Her parents had insisted on living with privacy while also living relatively close to the city. It made Momo laugh because they were never home to enjoy their “privacy” in the first place.

The hill. It was the best part of Momo's ride to school because she flew down it. Her feet off the pedals, she felt like a bullet cutting through water.

Sana rested on the sidewalk outside her house, she’d missed first hour, maybe Momo was sick and not going to school. Momo wasn’t sick that often, however, Sana knew the girl rode this way every day. Unless she'd been taken by a car Sana refused to move.

Momo was gearing up to fly when she spotted Sana on the other side of the road yawning away sleep.

"What are you doing?"

Sana perked up, she was right she hadn't missed the girl.

"What took you so long?"

"What?"

Momo had crossed the street toward where Sana sat.

"I wanted to say thanks for that night," Sana smiled before brushing past Momo and beginning her walk to school."

"You're welcome," Momo responded confused, had Sana really waited all this time just to say thanks?

* * *

Getting to know Sana wasn’t easy. Hell, it would’ve been easier to tell Nayeon about her crush than to track Sana down just for a quick conversation.

Despite being in a number of classes together Sana disappeared a lot. When Momo could find her and get enough courage to speak, Sana was whisked away by other people.

“Is she real,” Momo asked herself out loud glancing toward Sana’s table.

“I could ask,” Nayeon joked poking Momo’s cheek before sitting down next to Jihyo on the other side of their table.

Momo rested her head in her hand, “convinced she only stays in one place and it's at lunch.”

Jihyo laughed, “I heard Sana’s always busy, good luck getting her one on one.”

Momo played with the peas on her lunch tray and debated on whether it was worth it to pursue Sana.

“Forget Sana…” Nayeon stared Momo down, “Go for Mina, we can help.”

Momo and Jihyo turned to Nayeon who just shook her head and shoved a cheese sandwich in her mouth.

“Got a crush on Mina yourself,” Momo joked, receiving two simultaneous death glares.

“No Hirai, but I can tell Sana is bad news trust me.”

Jihyo shoved Nayeon’s shoulder, “You don’t know her, if Momo likes her then she likes her.”

“I’ll ask her out,” Momo stated smiling to herself.

“Are you sure,” Nayeon rubbed her temples, Momo was too stubborn sometimes.

“I would get her one on one then right Jihyo?”

Jihyo gulped down her milk before answering, looking between Nayeon and Momo you’d think they were the ones dating with the tension.

“It’s a good idea yeah.”

* * *

Momo had spent at least half an hour for 3 days straight practicing how she’d ask Sana out. Pacing her room, pretending her reflection was the bubbly girl. She coached her heart to not have a lot of hope so she wouldn’t be let down.

Upon Jihyo’s insistence, she decided to ask Sana after lunch when they were in calculus.

Sana sat ahead of Momo, which made it a lot easier to be overwhelmed by her. She constantly turned around to ask questions and her smile was really hard to fend off. Momo couldn’t help but reciprocate when Sana smiled or puffed out her cheeks. Sometimes the teacher would tell them to stop fooling around it embarrassed Momo but Sana acted unphased.

It was amusing to imitate Sana because she’d get indignant and flustered which was cute to Momo. She felt like she had some effect on the girl, but was also well aware that Sana had a huge effect on her.

Momo nudged Sana’s elbow asking for her attention. When Sana turned, however, all the courage and rehearsed lines for how to ask the girl out faded from her memory. She just stared into Sana’s eyes, content with their intensity boring through her.

“How was lunch,” Momo stuttered out, squeezing her eyes shut and internally smacking herself.

“It was good,” Sana replied over her shoulder, her focus only briefly taken off the class assignment.

A crumpled piece of paper that Momo had accidentally spilt water on was what held the question she'd been too nervous to ask out loud. She’d scrawled the question in haste, afraid if she didn’t at least make an effort she’d never try again.

She passed the paper to Sana diverting her attention to the assigned worksheet.

Sana sent the paperback immediately with a boxed ‘No’.

No matter how well she coached her heart to not get her hopes up she really hoped Sana would’ve said yes. She stared at the back of Sana’s head as the girl laughed to herself.

* * *

"You gave her a piece of paper," Nayeon asked incredulously.

Jihyo had obviously convinced Nayeon to stop being so worried about Momo and to trust Sana for the time being because Momo for sure had thought Nayeon would laugh and tease her again.

Momo begged her to quiet down, some kids turned toward their lunch table curious.

Jihyo sat in silence, staring between Nayeon and Momo she sighed to herself understanding the situation.

"She won't accept until you ask her out loud."

Nayeon nodded, throwing "I told you so" looks.

Momo groaned again for the 1000th time. Why was it all so difficult?

* * *

Sana was standing by Momo's bike. Waiting for Momo again, because she'd forgotten to say sorry about how she acted when she thanked the girl a couple of days ago. 

She also wanted to get time alone with the girl for more than 5 seconds. She wished Momo had more courage.

In fact Jihyo and Nayeon did too, as they guided Momo to her bike like parents because Momo refused to go over alone after seeing Sana.

"You're a baby," Jihyo poked Momo’s ribs.

"I'm nervous."

"Well get over it," Nayeon mumbled tugging Jiihyo’s arm back.

The couple discreetly stayed behind while Momo, oblivious as ever, walked up to Sana and her bike, her moral support walking the opposite direction.

"Oh hey Sana," Momo rubbed her neck, her casual act definitely needed work.

"Hi," Sana nodded, a smile fighting its way to her lips, "I forgot to say sorry for acting stupid so I’m sorry."

Momo had focused on Sana's lips, then her nose then her cheeks then her eyes. She took in everything about Sana, the way her mouth moved mesmerized her and she missed everything the girl said.

"Can we go on a date."

She blurted it out, her hands sweaty and her heart pounding in her ears. Sana was prettier than Nayeon, prettier than Mina even. 

Sana grinned, a big toothy grin that spread across her face before she answered, "I guess."

She walked away from Momo’s bike without another word leaving the stuttering girl to fumble with her bike lock while she processed.

A date with Sana, a girl who seemed unattainable and unreal, was now actually a thing that would happen.

Well, when Momo picked a day and got Sana’s number.

* * *

Momo sat outside Sana's house, feet in the gutter and wiping dirt off the sidewalk. Sana was hung over her eyes swollen.

The night before Momo had watched her dance at another one of Nayeon’s parties, she'd downed an entire bottle of coconut rum, using the bottle as a microphone while she lip-synced to some band that played in the background.

Now it was their first date and Sana was hung over.

Sana fished in her pocket for two Advils. Downing them with Coca Cola. Her cheeks tinged with red and Momo could tell Sana didn't want to be outside, didn't want to go on a date only wanted to curl up and sleep off the excess alcohol in her system.

"I want to be here," Sana spoke softly looking at Momo her eyes dark, "don't think I don't."

It made her feel at ease, Sana read her mind and even though she looked rough, the smile that Sana gave was genuine.

"At least you had fun last night," Momo kicked at a cigarette bud.

"I was just showing off."

"For who?"

"You," Sana took another swig of the soda.

The pair was awkward but in a cute way. That's how Jihyo described them. Nayeon had other thoughts, feeling increasingly more protective over Momo. Sana didn't seem like the best girl, she didn't seem to care much about anyone but herself.

* * *

Sana was simple. She didn’t like flashy dates, even though Momo had offered to take her places she was more inclined to want to go on walks and talk. She wanted to climb the hill and watch the sunset, she wanted to sit on the curb and watch cars go by.

Momo found it endearing that Sana liked to talk a lot, Sana was bubbly in school and outside of it. She loved to get lost in anecdotes and Momo found herself falling more and more for the girl.

They weren’t an official thing, Momo wasn’t quite sure how that worked. Wasn’t asking someone on a date enough? Weren't they considered a thing?

She hoped so.

Through the many stories they shared, Momo learned quickly that Sana liked partying. All her stories revolved around specific parties. Never her family, never her past, just stories that Sana offered up like shots.

Momo told a lot about herself, she wasn’t much into partying so she exchanged Sana’s party stories with her own about her family, her 3 dogs and even why her parents were never around.

Sana listened intently as if every word that Momo spoke was something precious. It’s partly why Momo thought they were unofficially officially a thing. No one paid that much interest in her ever. No one kissed her like Sana did.

Momo lay sprawled out on her bed thinking about ditching school because Sana had already texted her saying she wasn’t going because she was busy.

She sent a quick text back “But school will be boring without you :(.”

“Then come with me.”

“Where?”

“Up past the tree line on the hill, meet you there in 10.”

Momo sprung up from her bed, 10 minutes wasn’t enough time to impress Sana.

She made it to the tree line in 15 minutes, Sana was waiting leant against a tree with a camera case slung over her shoulder.

Momo acted like she’d been running, wiping fake sweat from her brow, “who knew that walk was so grueling?”

“You’re a sucky actress,” Sana laughed handing Momo her camera case.

Momo took it without hesitance following Sana as she made her own path through the trees.

“I need your help for my photography final,” Sana turned back to Momo realizing she’d forgotten to tell the girl why they were skipping, “you’re the prettiest girl at school anyway.”

Momo’s heart raced at what Sana said because the last part she said almost like a whisper. Like she was shy and couldn’t say it any louder than that.

“I’ll try my best.”

Sana picked small flowers off trees and bushes on their walk, her shirt cradling her private treasures. The walk with Momo had been filled with bursts of laughter, Sana trying not to trip and Momo itching to hold Sana’s hand.

"Right here looks good," Sana smiled at the tall grass patch, it looked soft like it would engulf Momo.

“Can you lay down for me?”

"You better take good pictures," Momo sighed setting Sana’s camera case down before finding a comfortable spot.

Sana knelt down next to Momo careful not to crush any of the flowers she'd chosen.

"We didn't even walk that far but you're kind of sweaty," her nose scrunched up in faux disgust.

"You'll never take another picture if you keep going," Momo laughed.

Sana began arranging each flower starting on the right side of Momo's face, the project was to show how nature could be apart of someone. How it makes someone softer, makes them seem untouchable.

Sana thought of Momo as someone who could bring the best out of anything. She needed her special charm more than ever for her final.

It was hard, the flowers tickled Momo's face no matter how gently Sana placed them.

"Can you stop moving," Sana huffed trying not to get irritated after fixing the flowers for the fourth time.

She hadn't even opened the camera case yet.

"Sorry should've told you I'm allergic," Momo wriggled her nose loosening some small white flowers.

She dug her hands into the tall grass, maybe if she just closed her eyes real tight and thought about something else it would go smoothly.

Sana finished putting the last flower on Momo's lip, her lips were soft causing Sana to place them gentler, her eyes fixated on Momo's breathing, the way the petals folded slightly and then returned to their original position.

She shook her head and undid the velcro on her case positioning herself above Momo she took a few quick shots, then she knelt and focused on the girl’s position clicking a few pictures to get the full image.

Momo relaxed, letting the grass go in her hands and then she could feel the warmth of Sana next to her.

Sana focused on Momo's facial features, the contrast between the right side of her face and the left that hadn't been touched. She looked incredible, Sana couldn't look away she was completely mesmerized.

The wind blew a few of the flowers off, but that didn't stop Sana or ruin the shot, it actually made the shot mean something more.

Momo's lips were now free, she pursed them.

"Is it ruined?"

"Shhh," Sana placed the camera down in the case.

She blew on Momo's lips and laughed, "Keep your eyes closed, just a few more."

Sana took flowers off Momo's cheek and nose rearranging them on to her eyes. One more shot.

She picked her camera back up looking through the lens at Momo felt false like she wasn't real. Sana looked away staring at Momo with her own eyes, a camera really wouldn't do her justice.

"You're a perfectionist you know," Momo whispered trying her best not to move her face and ruin Sana's shot.

Sana meant for their ditch day to be strictly about photography help. But it was slowly turning into something else entirely.

She leant forward, her thumb brushed the bottom of Momo's lip. Momo instinctively lifted her chin.

"Fuck it," Sana breathed. She leaned her head down and took Momo’s lips, kissing her softly. Momo hummed in response she'd been waiting for a while.

When Sana pulled away Momo was smiling like an idiot her eyes still closed, causing Sana to smile right back.

"Remind me to always be your subject," Momo pulled Sana’s head down to kiss her again, "I love the benefits."

* * *

Momo had been with Sana unofficially officially for 4 months. She called Sana her girlfriend, and Sana never protested. Things were starting to get better for her despite the pangs of loneliness she still felt when her family was away.

The only thing that worried her was that Sana was secretive. Momo was an open book, telling Sana about her friends, the time Momo fell out of an orange tree when she was trying to make a tree house, even Momo’s first girl crush. Sana knew Momo's favorite everything but all Momo knew was Sana’s favorite drink.

It was any type of alcohol.

Sana loved to drink, she was always tipsy or hung over. When she wasn’t, she wanted to do cute things like go on hikes or ditch school to marathon a cartoon. Those were starting to become more and more rare occurrences though. It didn't matter what Momo did to check her drinks or to keep her away from parties Sana found a way. Always.

Recently she'd been finding her own way a lot, without Momo.

“What’s your favorite color,” Momo texted Sana, bored of Nayeon’s party.

The past 5 texts were all questions from Momo that Sana hadn’t answered in weeks. If Nayeon saw her phone she’d wig out and tell Momo to stop being so pathetic. She did feel a little pathetic texting Sana even though Sana didn’t text back but she thought maybe the texts weren’t going through.

She had an android and it messed up sometimes, she hoped it was messing up more than Sana ignoring her.

“Hard question,” Momo glanced at her phone not sure the text back was real.

“I’m at a party now text you later Momoring.”

Momo read the text twice, the only person she knew who threw parties was Nayeon. Why didn’t Sana wanna come to these parties anymore?

* * *

Sana stopped asking Momo to ditch school with her. Her text had said that Momo should focus more on school. But Momo knew Sana was only ditching because she was hung over and lazy. Sana was going out more and more, Momo couldn’t keep up.

Their last study session for calculus ended with Sana downing half a bottle of Grey Goose. Momo didn’t think it was possible to function properly, Sana was so small that’s why she got stupid drunk really fast. But she was still able to solve calc problems without issue.

“You’re a professional drunk,” Momo joked as Sana explained how to get the right answer.

“And you suck a calc,” Sana giggled nudging the bottle closer to Momo, “let’s have some fun.”

Momo eyed the bottle, it was inviting but she really needed to ace the next test.

“I’m already having fun,” she capped the bottle leaning across her textbook to kiss Sana.

Sana kissed her softly, giggling to herself before closing her book and packing up her things.

“Good luck on the test I’ll see ya.”

“But we're supposed to study all night,” Momo protested, Sana had even brought over a change of clothes but now she was leaving.

“There’s a party downtown you can come if you want,” Sana was halfway out the door, not exactly expecting an answer, so Momo just let her go, ignoring the weird feeling in her chest.

* * *

Momo found herself frequenting the pharmacy for pain relievers. Sana was always in need, and she liked the goofy smile Sana gave when she produced the pain relief.

Sana was already there, leant up against the brick of the pharmacy.

"You come here a lot don't you?"

Sana's question was so casual it caught Momo off guard. She'd been expecting another impromptu apology for disappearing, not that.

"I.. uh yeah," she stuttered in response, a weird feeling of guilt washed over her like she'd been caught.

"You care a lot.." Sana trailed off musing over Momo’s selflessness.

Momo just stood there, she glanced down at the paper bag by Sana’s feet.

Of course, she had been drinking.

"What's your drink of choice?" Sana titled Momo's chin up, closing the space between the two.

Momo panicked. She'd only ever been drunk once. Nayeon insisted she needed the experience and it was an awful one.

"Wine," it came out as a breath, which Sana smirked at.

"Rich kid, I bet you drink from those fancy fluted glasses huh."

Sana had backed up picking up the paper bag with a bottle of who knows what. She took a swig and smiled, her eyes shiny like she'd been crying. There wasn't really anything Momo could do.

So she stood next to her, laced their fingers together and decided she'd try to get Sana sober more often. She deserved happiness, hopefully, she'd find it without drinking.

* * *

A few weeks later, Jungyeon hissed into Momo's ear that she'd seen Sana kissing someone else at a party that wasn't Nayeon’s. Momo’s heart stopped when Jungyeon pressed forward her chin digging into Momo's shoulder.

She explained that Sana was wasted, that she'd been tangled up with another girl, all hands and nails and lips and teeth.

She couldn't hear anything else in class but the whispers of Jungyeon saying Sana hadn't texted Momo that night because she was busy wrapped around another girl's body.

When Jungyeon leant back in her chair, and her voice was no longer floating through Momo’s ears, her lungs started to burn.

She ran her fingers through her hair, glanced at Sana’s empty desk and sifted through all the times Sana had ditched her for other things.

A searing sting flooded her body, hurting more than any physical pain she'd experienced before.

For a moment she convinced herself Jungyeon was probably lying. But it sounded like Sana, it sounded like her. She'd been itching to drink ever since Momo had become determined to limit her.

* * *

Sana and Momo weren't actually dating, that was more in Momo’s head. Sana hadn’t exclusively called Momo hers, they were more on a benefits type deal. They were cute together sure but Sana still sat at her lunch table and acted like Momo didn't exist at school. It was only at parties and when they randomly met up that they shared cute exchanges and really talked.

Momo convinced herself that it was okay she wasn't exclusively Sana's. Being upset over something she hadn't even seen, a possible rumor wasn't gonna get her anywhere.

So she decided to stuff that secret into the back of her mind, refusing to rip it out.

Sana was more affectionate since Jungyeon had whispered about the rumor, acting as if she wasn't secretly drinking when Momo went to study with Jihyo. Or that she wasn’t seeing someone else when Momo hung out with Nayeon. When they kissed all Momo thought about was if she tasted differently on Sana’s tongue.

Was she a better kisser?

The secret was killing her, she didn’t know how to process. Because Sana was different, her mind was clouded with worry over taking care of Sana, she’d been disregarding all the signs she should’ve been noticing.

Like the bruise on Sana’s collarbone, she questioned if she’d given it to Sana and forgotten, Sana made no attempt to cover it so she assumed her guess was right. Now she wasn’t so sure, she wasn’t sure if she knew Sana enough to trust her either.

* * *

Nayeon was simple. She said what she thought, she wasn't like Momo or Jihyo, she couldn't hold on to her thoughts and when she noticed how devoid of life Momo had been she voiced her opinion.

"This is Sana's fault," Nayeon gestured toward Momo.

Momo defended the girl, "No I’m just tired."

"What happened," Jihyo asked, worry clear in her voice.

Momo closed her eyes. For the past few days, all she'd been thinking about was what she'd done wrong. Why didn't Sana want her anymore? What was she lacking suddenly? What part of her had been lost in between pharmacy runs and bike rides?

What Jihyo and Nayeon were picking up on were the effects of Momo's self-destruction.

Makeup could only cover up a few shades of the dark pulling under Momo’s eyes. She was becoming increasingly more and more late to school, and she stopped interacting in lunch conversation.

Anyone could notice Momo wasn’t okay, Sana even noticed.

She slipped the girl a note in calculus, “Are you okay?”

Momo didn’t reply on paper but whispered she was fine, her voice still hoarse from crying before school.

Sana winced at the sound, nodding her head in acceptance of the answer. There wasn’t anything she could do.

* * *

Momo found herself lying in bed, staring at her ceiling wondering what was so fun about being drunk constantly. She'd bought a two-liter bottle of strawberry vodka from a girl at school.

She held the bottle, when the cap twisted off she'd finally be able to understand some of Sana’s world.

She drank a third of it, trying to figure out what she was missing what was wrong with her. It felt like a punishment.

"How do you like this stuff?"

It burned in her stomach, a pain she welcomed because she wasn't able to make Sana stay with her. Right now she imagined Sana tangled up with another girl at a party that wasn't Nayeon’s.

A party she knew Momo would never go to.

"Tell me how to feel about you now."

She sent risky texts in between more swigs of the cheap liquor, the fake strawberry taste burning her throat. Eventually, she fell asleep, phone in her lap waiting for a reply.

Momo awoke to the vibration of an incoming text, mascara dried on her cheeks, she rubbed at them regretful.

Sana’s text didn't address the multiple "I miss you," or " I love you's" or even "the music is so loud you'd like it here."

Just a simple "how was your night momoring?"

"It was great," she replied before rushing to the bathroom to vomit for two hours.

* * *

"Can you pick me up," Momo asked Nayeon over the phone. Too lazy to get on her bike and ride to school. She didn't want to see Sana, not that Sana had been showing up to school a lot recently anyway.

Nayeon was there in less than 3 minutes. It had been a while since Momo had talked to her and Jihyo. For a month after the rumor, Jungyeon had shared Momo had disassociated from everyone around her. Her parents had even come home and she didn’t leave her room till they left again.

She was a shell of herself, mumbling when spoken to and refusing to answer questions in class.

"Hey loser long time no talk," Nayeon teased as Momo climbed into the passenger seat of Nayeon’s BMW.

Momo forced a smile, "yeah sorry I’ve just been busy a lot lately."

Nayeon frowned, taking in her appearance, "Momo, I know about Sana."

Momo turned her head, blocking off all conversation and focusing her attention outside the car.

"Cool."

"I'm sorry."

It was hard not to laugh at that, Nayeon feeling sorry for Momo’s pathetic love life.

"For what?"

"Uh well," Nayeon began but Momo cut her off.

"Sana and I are fine, it's all rumors you know."

Nayeon narrowed her eyebrows at Momo, "okay."

* * *

Two days, Sana couldn't last two days without lying directly to Momo's face.

She'd been out looking for a birthday gift for Jihyo. Running through the city trying to find something cute and unique to make her best friend happy.

She ran into Sana, hands clasped around a girl who'd awkwardly lusted after Momo before. They were bubbling with laughter, cozying up to each other.

Just that morning Momo had asked if Sana wanted to go out and look for a gift together. Sana had declined, saying she was too busy repainting her room to go out.

Momo just stood there, letting the ache of her heart consume her. Sana caught a glimpse of Momo from across the street and froze, stopping Mina with her. She looked statuesque staring back at Momo.

For a second Momo could see a bit of Sana breaking with Momo. But then she directed her attention to Sana’s hands. They were still clasped with Mina’s.

Her mind had become more clouded because she could tell they looked good together, could tell just by the sight of them that Sana wanted Mina more.

She didn't want to accept it, to let Sana go with Mina.

So she called Nayeon up crying, grabbed a bottle of whiskey from her liquor cabinet and drank herself sick. Nayeon called Jihyo asking for help, but neither of them could convince Momo that the nice things she kept whispering about Sana were lies.

Nayeon wanted to shake the girl, to tell her that it didn't matter what Sana said. Whoever Sana was with wasn't just a friend.

Jihyo didn't know how to get rid of her pain, didn't know how to fix the situation and ended up just crying with her, holding her hair while Nayeon paced behind the two furious at the thought of Sana destroying Momo.

She wanted to spit “I told you so’s” but Momo was vomiting everything from her body. The scene broke Nayeon, Momo wasn’t the type to get drunk ever.

* * *

Momo agreed to go on one last date with Sana. Despite Nayeon’s adamant protests and Jihyo's disapproving looks she still enjoyed everything about Sana.

There were parts of Sana that her friends never saw, parts of Sana that she still hoped she could unlock. Maybe she could win Sana over again.

The two met up at the pharmacy, this time it was Momo’s turn to be swollen-eyed and hung over.

Sana was sober, she'd been sober for weeks since seeing Momo at school.

Sana could've taken Momo anywhere, but she took her to a cheap Denny's, where 9th graders thought it was edgy to smoke in the parking lot.

There was barely any conversation, Momo struggling to string enough syllables together. Sana somber, all she did was cut her pancake into smaller and smaller pieces. Momo swore she didn’t eat at all, just moved her food around a lot.

After everything, Sana still drove Momo home, kissing her in the front seat her fingertips grazing Momo’s thighs softly.

They became all lips and nails and teeth until Momo trailed kisses down Sana's neck.

Sana shoved Momo hard, a look of panic in her eyes at the thought of Momo potentially marking her. Giving her away to Mina who would kiss her in the same spot the next day. She couldn’t have Mina see yellow bruising, the mark of another girl.

Momo scoffed, because before Sana hadn’t cared if Momo saw another girl’s mark on her.

“I think you should go.”

Sana stared straight ahead as Momo stumbled from her car in a hasty goodbye.

Nayeon and Jihyo sat on the front step, they'd been waiting for Momo knowing she'd be out with Sana and knowing it wouldn't end well.

They stared as Momo stumbled out, and watched as Sana tore away from the curb without even checking to see if Momo was okay.

Momo flipped off the car before turning to her two friends, "Forget her.”


End file.
